While the Skaneateles girls basketball team is a short step from joining the elite in the local Class B ranks, Westhill made sure that, at least for now, the Lakers remain in that envious, but frustrating position in the pecking order.
When the two undefeated OHSL Liberty division sides squared off Thursday night, it was the Warriors unleashing a torrent of 3-pointers in the second quarter, and from there Skaneateles never recovered, taking a 66-45 defeat.
For a Lakers team that beat Bishop Ludden by 43 just a week earlier, it proved challenging right from the start, as it did not get a single point in the game’s first five-plus minutes before Mary Buck hit a jumper to put her team on the board.
Yet it didn’t cost the Lakers too much, because it rallied from an early 9-2 deficit to tie it, 10-10, early in the second period. Then Anna Ross took over.
Ross, the Warriors’ junior guard, is one of Central New York’s top all-around players, but one of the rare inconsistent parts of her game is outside shooting.
That wasn’t the case here, though. Ross drained three 3-pointers during that pivotal second quarter, part of a 12-point outburst that helped Westhill take a 29-16 lead into halftime. In all, Westhill made five 3-pointers during that frame, and seven for the night.
“When Anna makes her shots, she’s a tough match-up,” said Westhill head coach Sue Ludwig.
It didn’t help the Lakers, either, that Buck, one of the team’s pair of 6-foot forwards (along with Joanna Dobrovosky), sprained her ankle late in the half, forcing her out of the game.
This only added to the challenge Skaneateles faced. All through the game, guards Elizabeth Lane and Brittany Welch found it difficult to work the ball inside to Dobrovosky, hounded by Westhill’s strong perimeter trio of Ross, Maggie Tripodi and Sam Peebles.
In particular, Ross was impossible to solve. Her quick hands led to a rash of steals, especially in the second half, which helped thwart any Laker hopes of a comeback.
“She creates a lot of havoc for the other team,” said Ludwig.
The work of Ross also freed up the Warriors’ three-pronged attack. Peebles would work her way to 20 points, while Tripodi matched Ross and finished with 19 points. On the Lakers’ side, Lane led with 13 points, while Dobrovosky and Welch each ended up with 11 points.
Skaneateles will get another shot at Westhill on Jan. 24. In the meantime, the Lakers host Jordan-Elbridge on Monday and go to Cazenovia next Thursday before hitting the holiday break.
